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Thread: Athletes who tried to become enterainers

  1. #1
    Bunn-O-matic max venable's Avatar
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    Athletes who tried to become entertainers

    Has it ever worked out?

    Here are a few that come to mind:

    Brian Bosworth...are you kidding me. Miserable failure in the NFL. Miserable failure in Hollywood. Whose idea was it to try to make an actor out of him?

    Jim Brown...dude could run the football...dude can't act. Didn't work out, IMO.

    Shaq...the movie thing...the rapping thing...all-around bad ideas.

    Dick Butkus. What was the sitcom he was on? Was he a regular on something? I can't remember for sure...I just remember him being bad.

    Any others come to mind?
    Last edited by max venable; 05-13-2006 at 08:37 PM.
    For every action there is an equal and opposite criticism.


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  3. #2
    Churlish Johnny Footstool's Avatar
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    Re: Athletes who tried to become enterainers

    The NFL has produced a few:

    Merlin Olsen - TV's "Papa Murphy" and FTD spokesfellow

    Fred Dryer - TV's "Hunter"

    Alex Karras - George on TV's "Webster", the inimitable Mongo in "Blazing Saddles"

    And who could forget famed entertainer O.J. Simpson, star of various car rental commercials, "Naked Gun" movies, and my favorite reality TV show of all time, "The O.J. Simpson Trial."
    "I prefer books and movies where the conflict isn't of the extreme cannibal apocalypse variety I guess." Redsfaithful

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    Member pedro's Avatar
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    Re: Athletes who tried to become enterainers

    Chuck Connors played professional basketball and baseball and was "The Rifleman" on TV.
    School's out. What did you expect?

  5. #4
    Bunn-O-matic max venable's Avatar
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    Re: Athletes who tried to become enterainers

    Quote Originally Posted by pedro
    Chuck Connors played professional basketball and baseball and was "The Rifleman" on TV.
    I'd say it worked out pretty good for Chuck Connors.

    Alex Karras...that whole thing was bad.

    I should've thought of O.J.
    For every action there is an equal and opposite criticism.

  6. #5
    Man Pills Falls City Beer's Avatar
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    Re: Athletes who tried to become enterainers

    O.J. also appeared in "Capricorn One" (fake moon landing or some nonsense) and "The Towering Inferno" (ah, the ensemble cast).
    “And when finally they sense that some position cannot be sustained, they do not re-examine their ideas. Instead, they simply change the subject.” Jamie Galbraith

  7. #6
    Member pedro's Avatar
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    Re: Athletes who tried to become enterainers

    Although he was a child actor too, I've heard Kurt Russell was a hell of a second baseman before injuries derailed his career.

    edit:

    Russell also had a baseball career (Russell's father had been a baseball player for a while). In the early 1970s, Russell played second base for the minor league franchise of the California Angels (now the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim). He led his league in hitting with a .563 batting average. During a play, he was hit in the shoulder by another player running to second base. The collision tore the rotator cuff in one of Russell's shoulders. The injury forced his retirement from baseball in 1973, and he returned to acting.
    School's out. What did you expect?

  8. #7
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    Re: Athletes who tried to become enterainers

    Arnold? If you think Body Building is the same as athlete.

  9. #8
    Member pedro's Avatar
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    Re: Athletes who tried to become enterainers

    Quote Originally Posted by RBA
    Arnold? If you think Body Building is the same as athlete.

    andre the giant?
    School's out. What did you expect?

  10. #9
    breath westofyou's Avatar
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    Re: Athletes who tried to become enterainers

    Mike Dolan, King Kelly, Red Grange and Babe Ruth are some of the oldtimers.

  11. #10
    Big Red Machine RedsBaron's Avatar
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    Re: Athletes who tried to become enterainers

    Johnny Mack Brown starred for Alabama in the 1920s, including in the 1926 Rose Bowl, before becoming a star in "B" Hollywood westerns.
    Joe Namath briefly had a TV series and made a couple of movies, including "Norwood" with Glen Campbell and "C.C. and Company" with Ann Margret.
    Marion Michael Morrison played football at Southern Cal, before changing his name to John Wayne and having some success as an actor.
    Burt Reynolds briefly played football at Florida State.
    Mary Lou Retton appeared in "Scooged."
    Namath and Don Drysdale both appeared in episodes of "The Brady Bunch."
    Ed Marinaro nearly won the Heisman trophy before becoming an actor; he's best known for being in "Hill Street Blues."
    Don Meredith made several TV movies back in the 1970s.
    "Hey...Dad. Wanna Have A Catch?" Kevin Costner in "Field Of Dreams."

  12. #11
    Big Red Machine RedsBaron's Avatar
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    Re: Athletes who tried to become enterainers

    Carl Weathers played football at San Diego State and later briefly played with the Oakland Raiders; he's best known for his role as "Apollo Creed" in several "Rocky" movies.
    I think that Ward Bond was a football teammate of John Wayne at USC. Bond went on to make several hundred films but is perhaps best known for his role in TV's "Wagon Train." Films Bond appeared in include "It Happened One Night," "The Informer," "Bringing Up Baby", "It's A Wonderful Life", "Gone With The Wind", "The Searchers", "The Quiet Man", "Fort Apache"and "Rio Bravo."
    "Hey...Dad. Wanna Have A Catch?" Kevin Costner in "Field Of Dreams."

  13. #12
    Griffey4Prez
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    Re: Athletes who tried to become enterainers

    William "The Refrigerator" Perry lol, "The Rock"...I actually like The rock as an actor, hes not bad....

  14. #13
    breath westofyou's Avatar
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    Re: Athletes who tried to become enterainers

    Bond went on to make several hundred films but is perhaps best known for his role in TV's "Wagon Train."
    Bond was also a steady player in the John Ford stable of actors, a good actor too.

    He was the Captain/Preacher in The Searchers.

  15. #14
    Member redsfanmia's Avatar
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    Re: Athletes who tried to become enterainers

    Brett Farve was great in There's something about Mary.
    When I see the 2016 Reds, I see a 100 loss team and no direction.

  16. #15
    Big Red Machine RedsBaron's Avatar
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    Re: Athletes who tried to become enterainers

    My youngest son loved "Space Jam" in which Michael Jordan played Michael Jordan.
    Kareem Abdul-Jabbar was in "Airplane."
    I'd guess that the greatest athlete who ever made a go of being an entertainer was Bugs Bunny. He was a terrific baseball player; who can forget Bugs beating the Gashouse Gorillas all by himself?
    "Hey...Dad. Wanna Have A Catch?" Kevin Costner in "Field Of Dreams."


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